YYH Rent Crossover
by Burning Snow
Summary: YYH characters within the wonderful story of Rent. Gay, straight, and lesbian pairings. Involvement of minimal drugs and AIDS. Better summary inside.
1. Rent

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho or Rent.

For Kitty. This is the work of genius I've been obsessing over for a long time now. Since you can't see the show and, to my knowledge, haven't seen the movie, I thought I'd write it out for you. I truly hope you like it as much as I do.

I've been in a Rent-obsessive mood lately, and I haven't had any brilliant ideas for fanfics, so I decided to write out Rent, except with the Yu Yu Hakusho characters.

**PLEASE READ THIS SECTION. IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT.**

**1. **This story is a **mix** of the **Rent Broadway production**, the **Rent movie**, and a **few minor ideas of my own**.

**2.** Since Rent is a musical, there are songs in this story. I've tried my best to convey them. Even so, it's hard to imagine the songs, so I've posted a link further along in my notes that might be helpful.

**2. **Instead of using the Rent characters, I have used some major characters from Yu Yu Hakusho.

**3. **I've **tried** to **best match** the personalities and relationships of the YYH characters with the personalities and relationships of the Rent characters, but **sometimes it didn't quite work that way**. For the Rent story to work, I needed to adjust the characters. **This means that some characters are OOC.**

**For example, Keiko as a stripper? Hiei as a social, helpful, random human being? I needed to do that to get the relationships straight.** Originally, Yusuke was playing Mark, Hiei was Roger, and Yukina was Mimi. But that would mean Yusuke had previously been dating Botan, and that now Hiei would be dating his sister. If I made Keiko into Mimi and left Hiei as Roger (whose character he best suits) Hiei would be going out with Keiko, leaving Yusuke…where? So now, Yusuke is Roger, going out with Keiko as Mimi. Hiei has been moved to Mark's role.

**4. DO NOT** **BASH ME **for making Shizuru and Botan lesbian lovers, for making Touya a drag queen, or for making Kurama and Touya gay lovers. **DO NOT BASH ME **for making Yusuke, Keiko, Touya, and Kurama have AIDS. **This is how Rent is intended to work.** If you don't like the pairings or the involvement of a disease, go jump off the Empire State Building.

**5. **If you don't understand the story, feel free to ask me questions. I'm a Rent freak…I should be able to answer any questions you might have. If you don't feel like asking me a question, you can watch the movie for yourselves. It comes out on DVD on Feb. 21st, but if you can't wait that long, I found a copy of it here:

H t t p (insert colon here) (insert slash here) / p r o f i l e . m y s p a c e . c o m / I n d e x . c f m ? f u s e a c ti o n (insert equal sign here)u s e r . V i e w p r o fi l e & f ri e n di d (insert equal sign here) 4 5 0 9 3 1 7 6

Just scroll all the way to the right, go down a little, and you should see a video screen loading. It's the entire movie, and it's really good.

**6.** For those familiar with the show/movie, I hope I've done it justice in writing form.

**7. CAST LIST for Chapter 1 **

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Mukuro:** Mark's mother

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Koenma:** Benjamin Coffin III (owns the apartments and the lot next to them through marriage to a wealthy woman)

**Botan:** Maureen Johnson (lesbian; performing artist)

**Shizuru:** Joanne Jefferson (lesbian; lawyer)

I think that's all my notes for now. Enjoy the fic, everybody! And **_please review_**!

* * *

The story begins in New York City, on Christmas Eve, with a film-maker, Hiei, and his roommate, a musician named Yusuke.

They lived in an industrial loft on the corner of 11th Street and Avenue B, the top floor of what was once a music-publishing factory. Old rock-'n'-roll posters hung on the walls. They had Yusuke's picture advertising gigs at CBGB's and the Pyramid Club.

Hiei and Yusuke had an illegal wood-burning stove; its exhaust pipe crawled up to a skylight. All of their electrical appliances were plugged into one thick extension cord which snaked its way out a window.

Outside, a small tent city had sprung up in the lot next to their building. Inside, Hiei and Yusuke were freezing because they had no heat.

Hiei turned his camera to Yusuke, who was sitting on a metal table in the center of the room.

"Smile!" Hiei exclaimed.

Yusuke shot him a look and went back to plucking the rusty strings on his beat-up electric guitar.

Hiei sighed and began focusing the camera on various points around the loft. "December 24th, nine p.m. Eastern Standard time. From here on in I shoot without a script. I guess I'll see if anything comes of it…instead of my old shit."

Yusuke snorted a laugh, and Hiei swung the camera back to him.

"First shot…Yusuke, tuning his Fender guitar," Hiei said, and continued with a muttered, "which he hasn't played in a year…"

Yusuke loudly complained, "This won't tune!"

"So we hear," Hiei retorted. He turned the camera so that he was filming himself. "You'll have to excuse Yusuke…he's just coming back from half a year of withdrawal."

"Are you talking to me?" Yusuke asked in annoyance, glaring up from his guitar.

"No…not at all," Hiei said, and brought the camera back around to Yusuke. "Alright, now I am. Tell the folks at home what you're doing, Yusuke."

Yusuke rolled his eyes. "I'm writing one great song—"

The ringing of their telephone cut him off.

"Saved," he breathed.

Hiei swung the camera around again. "Zoom in on the answering machine," he said, and the machine then emitted a horrid-sounding "SPEAK!" in the exaggerated voices of Hiei and Yusuke.

A loud voice was heard next, saying, "That was a very loud beep! I don't even know if this is working…Hiei, are you there? Are you screening your calls? It's Mom!"

Hiei clapped a hand to his forehead and groaned, "Not her!"

Yusuke grinned. "Good old lady Mukuro, wishing her son and his roommate a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah…"

"Shut it," Hiei growled.

"Well…I just wanted to call and say that your father and I love you and that we'll miss you tomorrow," Hiei's mother continued. "Yukina and the kids are here; they send their love, of course. By the way, I hope you like that hot plate I sent you. Just be sure not to leave it on when you leave the house, dear…don't you remember that incident with Kazuma and the fire alarm?"

Both Yusuke and Hiei snorted laughter, remembering the event well.

"Anyway," Mukuro went on, "I'm sorry to hear that Botan dumped you. But you know what, son? I say, "C'est la vie!" So let her be a lesbian! Don't you worry…she doesn't know what she's missing! Love, Mom."

She finally hung up the phone. Hiei let out an exasperated sigh and focused the camera on his roommate once more. "Tell the folks at home what you're doing, Yusuke."

Yusuke shook his head in disbelief. "I'm writing one great song—"

The ringing of the phone cut him off yet again.

"Yes," he hissed.

"And we screen," Hiei said, rounding the camera on the answering machine once more as it let out, "SPEAK!"

The voice of Kurama Minamino, also known as Shuichi, came from the machine next. He sang, "Chestnuts roasting…"

Hiei vaulted for the phone. "Kurama!" he exclaimed when he picked it up. Kurama had been out of town for seven months.

"Hey, I'm downstairs, so throw down the key, alright?" Kurama said.

"Sure." Hiei hung up, went to the balcony of the loft, and dropped the key to their door to the waiting red-head below.

"Thanks, I'll be right up," Kurama shouted to him, hanging up the pay phone he had called from.

Hiei nodded and went back inside.

Kurama threw his bag over his shoulder and headed toward the building door. Suddenly a group of guys walked up to him. "Hey man…you got a light?" one asked.

"Yeah…" Kurama answered, but when he reached into his pocket for a lighter, one of the thugs punched him in the gut. He was taken by surprise, but he kicked the punk, obviously the leader, in the crotch and ran.

"Shit!" the guy exclaimed, and the rest of the gang ran after Kurama. They soon cornered him in a side alley, beat him up, and stole his stuff, which didn't amount to much, but it included his coat, and it was freezing. He lay in the alley, bleeding.

Back in the loft, the phone had rung again. Hiei thought it was Kurama calling back and didn't screen. "Hey, what's taking you so long?" he asked.

"Ho ho ho!" came the voice of their landlord.

"Koenma!" Hiei said in surprise, holding the phone between him and Yusuke.

"Shit," Yusuke groaned.

"Yo dudes, merry Christmas Eve. I'm on my way."

"Great!" Hiei said, mocking enthusiasm.

"Fuck," echoed Yusuke, softly enough so that Koenma wouldn't hear him.

"Yeah, I need the rent," Koenma said.

"Hang on…what rent?" Hiei asked.

"This past year's rent, which I let slide."

"But you said we were golden!"

"When you bought the building," Yusuke chimed in.

"When we were roommates," Hiei said. "Don't you remember? You lived here."

"Ah yes, how could I forget?" Koenma answered. "It was you two, me, Kurama, and…Botan, right? How is the drama queen?"

"Botan?" Hiei questioned. "Oh…she's getting ready for her performance."

"Are you still her production manager?"

"I was bumped two days ago."

"You still dating her?"

"What is this, 20 Questions?" Hiei asked in annoyance.

"She dumped him last month," Yusuke answered, smirking.

Hiei glared at him.

"What? So she's got a new man?"

"Well…no," Hiei admitted.

"C'mon…what's his name?"

"She's a lawyer named Shizuru."

"_She_?" Koenma started cracking up on the other end of the line. Yusuke smirked again, and Hiei sighed.

"So she turned lesbian on you, huh? Sorry about that. Back to my point…the rent is due. Pay it, or I'll have to evict." With that, Koenma hung up.

"I wish I could strangle you right now," Hiei said to his roommate, slamming the phone onto the receiver.

Yusuke chuckled, shook his head, and began to pick out Musetta's Waltz on his electric guitar. Suddenly, the power on the amp blew, and the loft was bathed in darkness.

"Typical!" Hiei yelled. "The power blows!"

Both Yusuke and Hiei leapt up as an inexistent rock band began to play.

"How do you document real life when real life's getting more like fiction each day?" Hiei asked, singing with the music. "Headlines, breadlines blow my mind and now this deadline: "Eviction or pay"—RENT!"

"How do you write a song when the chords sound wrong—though they once sounded right and rare?" Yusuke sang. "But the notes are sour. Where is they power you once had to ignite the air?"

"And we're hungry and frozen!"

"Some life that we've chosen."

"How we gonna pay?" they sang together. "How we gonna pay? How we gonna pay last year's rent?"

Yusuke tossed candles from the storage closet to Hiei, who tried to light them with minimal matches.

"How do you start a fire when there's nothing to burn and it feels like something's stuck in your flue?" Yusuke sang, rolling out their illegal wood-burning stove.

"How can you generate heat when you can feel your feet and they're turning blue?"

Yusuke began ripping down papers from the walls, and Hiei collected his old manuscripts.

"You light up a mean blaze," Hiei said.

"With posters," Yusuke answered, lighting his own gig advertisements on fire and throwing them into the barrel.

"And screenplays." Hiei did the same with his film writings.

"How we gonna pay? How we gonna pay? How we gonna pay last year's rent?"

The music lowered. Outside the loft, at a distant pay phone, Shizuru Kuwabara placed a call. "Don't screen, Botan. It's me, Shizuru…your substitute production manager! Did you eat? No, don't change the subject…Darling! You haven't eaten all day! You won't throw up, believe me. The digital delay? Well…it didn't blow up…exactly…there may have been one teeny, tiny spark…you're NOT calling Hiei!"

In the dark side alley, Kurama struggled to stand. He leaned against a brick wall, panting. "How do you stay on your feet when on every street it's Trick or Treat—and tonight, it's Trick?" he groaned. ""Welcome back to town!" I should lie down…everything's brown and…oh, I feel sick."

Back at the loft, Hiei ran out onto the balcony to look for Kurama. "Where is he?"

In the alley, Kurama sank to the ground. "I'm getting dizzy…"

Hiei ran back into the loft and continued feeding papers to the fire with Yusuke.

"How we gonna pay? How we gonna pay? How we gonna pay last year's rent?" they sang.

Hiei glanced at a script page and read, "The music ignites the night with passion and fire!" He shook his head and tossed it into the flame.

Yusuke grabbed another page of his manuscript and read, "The narration crackles and pops with incendiary wit!"

Hiei sighed and grabbed his camera. "Zoom in as we burn the past to the ground, and feel the heat of the future's glow."

The phone suddenly rang. Shrugging, Hiei picked it up. "Hello? Botan? Your equipment won't work? Okay, all right—I'll go!" He slammed the phone down.

Hiei and Yusuke go out onto the balcony to see that all the other inhabitants of the buildings had done the same. They were all holding Eviction Notices, obviously posted by Koenma, and burning them as they dropped them to the street below.

"How do you leave the past behind when it keep finding ways to get to your heart?" they all sang in unison. "It reaches way down deep and tears you inside out—till you're torn apart! Rent!"

Koenma drove up in his Range Rover.

"How can you connect in an age where strangers, landlords, lovers—your own blood cells betray?" the tenants sang. "What binds the fabric together when the raging, shifting winds of change keep ripping away?"

Koenma got out of his car and slammed the door. "Throw a line in the sand and then make a stand!"

Yusuke turned to Hiei and mocked a swordfight. "Use your camera to spar!"

"Use your guitar," Hiei retorted.

The tenants yelled, "When they act tough you call their bluff! We're not gonna pay! We're not gonna pay! We're not gonna pay last year's rent—this year's rent—next year's rent! We're not gonna pay rent!

"Cause everything is rent!" Hiei and Yusuke sang, and the inexistent guitar and drums gave them an amazing finish to the song.

"Hey you two, come down here!" Koenma called up to them.

"Coming," Hiei said, and they disappeared into the loft.

Koenma tapped his foot while he was waiting. He saw an old man leaning against his car. "Hey, you bum! Get your ass of the Range Rover!"

The old guy rolled his eyes and shuffled away.

"You know, that attitude toward the homeless is exactly what Botan is protesting," Hiei said as he and Yusuke appeared in the doorway.

"Botan is protesting loosing her performance space. She has nothing against my _attitude_," Koenma said snidely.

"What's happened to the Koenma we used to know?" Yusuke asked. "What happened to your heart? What about the ideals you once pursued?"

"I'm the owner of that lot next door, and as the owner, I have the right to do with it as I please."

"Well, happy birthday, Jesus!" Yusuke scoffed.

"The rent," Koenma pressed.

"You're wasting your time. You know we're broke," Yusuke said.

"And you broke your word…this is ridiculous!" Hiei yelled.

Koenma looked at him. "Well, maybe there is a way you won't have to pay."

"Like what?"

"Like…convince Botan to cancel her protest."

"Why us?" Hiei exclaimed. "Why don't you just call the cops, or...get an injunction or something?"

"I called the cops, and they're on standby," Koenma answered. "But my major investor…"

"Father-in-law," Hiei coughed.

"…would rather that I handled this quietly."

"You can't quietly wipe out an entire tent city and then watch "It's a Wonderful Life" on TV!" Yusuke objected.

"You want to produce films and write songs? Huh?" Koenma accused. "Well, you need somewhere to do it. And a state-of-the-art, digital, virtual interactive studio is what we used to dream about, isn't it? It would let us do our work, and get paid at the same time."

Yusuke and Hiei exchanged skeptical looks.

"You'll see, boys!" Koenma encouraged. "We'd rent the condos on top…you'd stay for free, of course. You'd have it made! All you need to do is stop the protest."

Yusuke glared at him, and Hiei remained silent.

"You'll see—or you'll pack!" Koenma turned and walked back to his car.

Yusuke thrust his thumb over his shoulder in Koenma's direction. "You know, he could really use some Prozac."

"Or heavy drugs," Hiei suggested.

"Or group hugs," sneered Yusuke. They both laughed.

"Hey, Koenma!" Hiei shouted after the Range Rover disappearing down the street. "We'll find a way to _save_ the protest!"

"C'mon, it's freezing out here. Let's get back inside…not that it's much better," Yusuke said.

"Yeah, you're right." Hiei followed the guitarist back into the building.


	2. You Okay, Honey?

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I've written up to 'Santa Fe' so far (that's 31 pages!) and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 2**

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen (not in this particular chapter, though); has AIDS)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

Outside the alley where Kurama lay practically unconscious, a homeless man stood on the street corner. He sang, "Christmas bells are ringing! Christmas bells are ringing! Christmas bells are ringing…somewhere else! Not here!"

A young man with dyed blue hair and turquoise bangs walked up to him. "Merry Christmas," he said. The homeless man looked at him strangely and walked away.

The young man shrugged and sat down on an old wooden crate. He took out his prized possessions: two wooden drumsticks and a ten-gallon plastic pickle tub. Turning the tub upside down, he started banging a beat on it with his drumsticks. A woman passing by dropped a quarter to him. He looked up, shouted, "Merry Christmas!" after her, and continued to play.

Soon, though, the man was interrupted by a loud moan coming from the alley. A second moan followed the first.

Cocking his head inquisitively, the young man got up and shoved his drumsticks into his pocket. He put the pickle tub under his arm and walked to the entrance of the alley. "Hello?" he called. "Is someone there?"

Another groan answered him, and he entered the alley.

"My God!" he exclaimed when he saw the injured man. He ran to him. "You okay, honey?" he asked with concern, kneeling next to the redhead.

Kurama coughed up blood. He slowly replied, "I'm afraid so."

The young man helped him sit up and offered him a handkerchief to wipe the blood off his face. "Did they get anything? Any money?"

"No, I didn't have any. But they stole my stuff…including my coat. Well, they missed a sleeve!" he exclaimed, tossing the torn sleeve of his former coat aside. He started to cough up blood again.

The man dabbed at the blood with the handkerchief.

"Thanks," Kurama groaned.

"Hell, it's Christmas Eve. My name's Touya, but a lot of people know me as Angel."

"Angel? Indeed…I'm Shuichi, but my friends call me Kurama."

"Two names too, huh?"

"Yeah."

Touya smiled. "C'mon, let's get you cleaned up. You can come to my place, get something to eat…spend the night if you have nowhere else to go."

"Well, my friends are waiting…" the redhead began, a pinkish tint flying to his cheeks.

The street performer put a finger to his lips. "You're cute when you blush," he commented. "Just to tell you, I don't take 'no' for an answer when dealing with someone in your condition. Besides, you can come with me to my Life Support meeting tomorrow."

Kurama grinned as much as he could with a cut lip. He gratefully slung an arm around Touya's shoulder and stood with his help. "Life Support?" he questioned.

"Yeah. It's a group for people coping with life, especially people with AIDS. People like me."

"Really? I guess I should fit right in then."

"You too?"

"Yeah. Me too."

They walked slowly out of the alley.


	3. One Song Glory

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I've written up to 'Santa Fe' so far (that's 31 pages!) and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 3**

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Keiko:** Mimi Marquez (exotic dancer; junkie; HIV positive)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

"Well, I'm off," Hiei said, swinging a scarf around his neck.

"To where?"

"I'm gonna go look for Kurama. He's been gone too long."

Yusuke grabbed his acoustic guitar and collapsed onto the sofa. "Alright. Be careful out there."

Hiei shrugged. "You could come with."

"Like shit I could, Hiei. I don't have a bike."

"Whatever. Don't forget to take your AZT."

On second thought, he turned his camera on. "Close on Yusuke," he narrated. "His girlfriend, Kisa, left a note saying, "We've got AIDS" before slitting her wrists in the bathroom."

"Do you have a death wish or something?" Yusuke muttered maliciously.

"Fine, I'll shut up," Hiei said, shutting his camera off. "But you have to get out of the house."

He slid the door open, put his rusted bike over his shoulder, and left.

Yusuke sighed and strummed some chords on his guitar. "I'm writing one great song before I…"

He trailed off and began to pluck out Musetta's Waltz once again. He was doing well until he hit a bum note.

He tossed his pick aside in exasperation. After a few minutes, though, he retrieved his pick and started strumming again, this time singing along:

"One song…glory. One song before I go. Glory…one song to leave behind. Find one song, one last refrain. Glory from the pretty boy front man who wasted opportunity. One song…he had the world at his feet. Glory in the eyes of a young girl—a young girl. Find glory beyond the cheap colored lights; one song before the sun sets. Glory—on another empty life. Time flies—time dies!"

He frantically strummed the guitar with full emotion as he belted out, "Glory! One blaze of glory! One blaze of glory—glory!"

He reverted back to a slow, depressed tone.

"Find glory in a song that rings true; truth like a blazing fire…an eternal flame. Find one song, a song about love, glory from the soul of a young man…a young man. Find the one song before the virus takes hold; glory like a sunset. One song to redeem this empty life. Time flies—and then no need to endure anymore! Time dies…"

Yusuke was interrupted by a sharp knock on the metal door. He sighed, put down his guitar, and went to answer, thinking it was Hiei.

"What'd you forget?" he began, sliding open the door.

However, instead of Hiei, there was a beautiful girl standing there in a tank top, black tights, knee-high boots, and a miniskirt. It was a girl named Keiko from the apartment downstairs.

"Got a light?" she asked, holding out a candle. Obviously her electricity had been knocked out as well.

"I know you," he answered. "You're—you're shivering!"

He put an arm around her, but she shrugged it off as she walked into the loft. "Oh, it's nothing. They just turned off my heat, and I've been a little weak lately. Would you light my candle?"

He was looking at her in an odd way. "What are you staring at?" she asked.

Yusuke shook his head. "Nothing…your hair in the moonlight. You look familiar."

He lit her candle, and she started to leave. On her way out, she stumbled.

Yusuke caught her before she fell. "Can you make it?"

"I just haven't eaten much today. At least the room stopped spinning." She noticed him looking at her strangely again. "What?"

"Nothing," he replied. "It's just…your smile reminded me of—"

Keiko laughed. "I always remind people of—who is she?"

"She died," Yusuke said. "Her name was Kisa."

Keiko turned away for a moment and blew out the light. "It's out again," she claimed, turning back to him and holding it out for him to light. "I'm sorry about your friend. Would you light my candle?"

Yusuke lit the candle again. "Well-"

"Yeah? Ow!"

"Oh the wax…it's…"

"Dripping! I like it between my…"

"Fingers, I figured. Oh, well. Goodnight."

Keiko looked thoroughly insulted, but she left. Yusuke shook his head and headed back toward the couch, but there was another knock on the door.

"It blew out again?" he asked when he saw that Keiko had returned.

"No! I think I dropped my stash!" she said, and shoved him out of the way so that she could look for it.

"I know I've seen you somewhere…when I used to go out," Yusuke said. "Oh, your candle's out again."

Keiko growled, "I'm illin'—I had it when I walked in here. It was pure! Is it on the floor?" She got down on all fours and started searching under the table.

"The floor?" Yusuke questioned.

Before he could get on his hands and knees to help her look, she said innocently, "They say that I have the best ass below 14th Street. It is true?"

She slid back so that Yusuke could get a better look. "What?" he asked, confused.

"You're staring again!" she accused, getting up.

"Oh no…I mean, you do—have a nice—I mean—" he shook his head and changed the subject. "You look familiar."

"Like your dead girlfriend," she answered sarcastically.

"Only when you smile, but I'm sure I've seen you somewhere else."

"Do you go to the Cat Scratch Club? That's where I work…I dance."

"Yes! I remember now…they used to tie you up!"

"It's a living."

"I didn't recognize you without the handcuffs."

She tried to change the topic. "Would you light my candle?" she asked, holding out the extinguished candle.

He lit it again, but refused to drop the subject. "Honestly, you should forget that kind of stuff…you look like you're sixteen!"

Keiko pouted. "I'm nineteen, but I'm old for my age. I'm just born to be bad!"

Yusuke gave her a skeptical look. "I was like that once. I used to shiver like that."

"I have no heat, I told you—"

"I used to sweat."

"I've got a cold."

"Uh huh. I used to be a junkie."

"Now and then I like to…feel good, you know?"

Yusuke spotted something out of the corner of his eye. It was Keiko's stash. "Here it—"

He stooped to pick it up.

"What's that?" Keiko hissed, grabbing for it.

Yusuke then thought better of giving it back to her. He wanted it for himself, after all. Just because he had quit didn't mean that he didn't like getting high once in a while. "Oh, it's just…a candy-bar wrapper." He shoved it into his back pocket.

Keiko smiled and stared into her candle's flame. "_We_ could light the candle," she murmured.

Annoyed, Yusuke leaned over and blew it out.

"What'd you do with my candle?" she asked.

"Sorry. That was my last match," he replied, slumping down onto the sofa.

She sat next to him. "Oh, well. Our eyes will adjust…and at least we have the moon."

"You know, maybe it's not really the moon. I hear Spike Lee shooting down the street."

"Bah humbug," she said, grasping his hand in the dark and pretending it was a mistake.

"You have cold hands," he observed.

"So do you. Yours are big, like my father's hands." Suddenly she pulled him up and wrapped her arms around him. "Do you wanna dance?"

"With you?" he questioned, surprised.

"No," she said sarcastically, pulling away and twirling under his arm, "with my father."

He smiled. "My name's Yusuke."

She pressed her body into his again and came extremely close to kissing him, but instead, she slid her hand into his back pocket and grabbed her stash.

"They call me Keiko." She pulled away, dangling her reclaimed drugs in front of him, and exited the loft with swinging hips.

Yusuke stared after her in disbelief.


	4. Today 4 U

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I've written up to 'Christmas Bells' so far (that's 36 pages!) and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 4**

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Botan:** Maureen Johnson (lesbian; performing artist)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

When Hiei finally got home later that night, Yusuke didn't mention anything about Keiko's visit to the loft. Instead, he simply listened to Hiei go on about how he couldn't find Kurama anywhere. Personally, he hoped Kurama was alright.

To their surprise, early the next morning the metal door slid open to reveal their long-lost friend with the key to their door between his teeth.

"Merry Christmas, bitches," Kurama laughed as he entered the apartment, a plastic pickle tub in hand. He threw the key to Hiei, who deftly caught it.

"Hey buddy," Hiei said. "What happened to you last night?"

"Long story," Kurama replied. He set the pickle tub onto the table and began emptying the contents.

"Oh, hi," Yusuke said hesitantly.

Kurama looked insulted. "Just "oh, hi" after seven months?"

"Sorry."

Kurama smiled and engulfed Yusuke in a huge hug.

"You've brought us a Christmas feast!" Hiei exclaimed upon seeing the food Kurama had in the tub.

"And don't forget a little Stoli," Kurama said, revealing the bottle and pouring it into three plastic cups.

"You struck gold at MIT?" Yusuke asked.

"Negative. They expelled me for my theory of actual reality. But I did get a teaching gig at NYU."

"So that's how you can afford to splurge on us," Hiei said, downing his drink.

"Wrong again," Kurama answered, grinning.

Hiei and Yusuke exchanged confused looks as Kurama backed up to the door.

"I'd like to introduce you to someone I met last night. Gentlemen, our benefactor on this Christmas Day—whose charity is only matched by talent, I must say. A new member of the Alphabet City avant-garde—Touya, a.k.a. Angel Dumott Schunard!"

The redhead slid open the door, and a person in high-heeled boots, zebra tights, a fuzzy Santa mini-dress, and a black bobbed haircut twirled into the room with a fan of twenty-dollar bills in each hand.

Yusuke and Hiei's mouths dropped open. A woman? They thought Kurama was gay. When they looked closer, though, their fears were put to rest. It was only a drag queen!

"Today for you, tomorrow for me!" he—she?—exclaimed.

Upbeat music began to play, and Touya sang, "Today for you, tomorrow for me."

"And you should hear her beat," Kurama said proudly.

Touya handed Yusuke and Hiei each a wad of bills.

"You earned this on a street?" Hiei asked in amazement.

Touya explained in song:

"It was my lucky day today on Avenue A when a lady in a limousine drove my way. She said, "Darling, be a dear, haven't slept in a year. I need your help to make my neighbor's yappy dog disappear. This Akita Evita just won't shut up. I believe if you play non-stop that pup will breathe its very last high-strung breath. I'm certain that cur will bark itself to death." Today for you, tomorrow for me. Today for you, tomorrow for me!"

Touya was doing a fabulous dance as well. He leapt, twirled, kicked, jumped, and shook his behind to the beat the entire time. He continued:

"We agreed on a fee—a thousand dollar guarantee, tax-free…and a bonus if I trim her tree. Now who could foretell that it would go so well? But sure as I am here that dog is now in doggy hell. After an hour, Evita, in all her glory, on the window ledge of that twenty-third story—like Thelma and Louise did when they go the blues—swan-dove into the courtyard of the Gracie Mews. Today for you, tomorrow for me. Today for you, tomorrow for me!"

Touya whipped out his drumsticks and began to play an amazing drum solo on the metal table. Soon, he had jumped onto the table and was banging on the pipes above their heads.

When he was finished with the solo, he leapt down and sang:

"Back on the street, where I met my sweet, where he was moaning and groaning on the cold concrete—the nurse took him home for some Mercurochrome, then I dressed his wounds and got him back on his feet!"

He ran at and up the wall, flipped over, and landed spectacularly on his feet.

"Singin' today for you, tomorrow for me! Today for you, tomorrow for me! I said today for you, tomorrow for me. Today for you, tomorrow…"

He sat on a circular table and Kurama spun him around.

"…for me!"

Yusuke, Hiei, and Kurama clapped for his performance. Touya stood and bowed.

Then, the phone rang, and the answering machine once again belted out, "SPEAK!"

"Hiei? Hi, it's me, Botan. I know I called last night but, listen, I really do need your help. Shizuru's my new production manager, but she doesn't know what the hell she's doing. So please, baby, just come down to the performance space—"

Hiei picked up before she could embarrass him any further. "Hey, Botan. Yeah, sure, I'll be there. Okay, see you soon."

He hung up. "Can you believe her?" he asked the others. "I mean, first she just dumps me…"

"What do you mean? Botan dumped you?" Kurama questioned.

"Yes. She dumped me for some lawyer. Her name is Shizuru."

Kurama raised an amused eyebrow, and the three started chuckling.

Hiei rolled his eyes. "And now she wants me to go fix her sound equipment!"

"You could've said no," Kurama stated, and lit some weed.

"I know…but…"

The redhead grinned and blew out smoke. "Aw, that's cute. You still love her."

"Yeah, right."

"Don't deny it, boy."

Touya interrupted. "Um, I think we'd better get going."

"To where?" asked Yusuke.

"Oh, it's this gathering…Life Support," answered Kurama.

"You two should come," Touya suggested. "It's not just for people with AIDS, and you don't have to stay too long."

"Sure, I'll be there," Hiei said. "But first I've got a protest to save."

"See, I told you," Kurama said, smiling a knowing smile and moving his hand as if he were cracking a whip. "Wha-push, wha-push."

"Yusuke?" Touya asked.

"I'm not much company, you'll find," Yusuke muttered.

Hiei punched him on the shoulder. "Behave!"

"It's okay. You'll see, boys. He'll come around," Touya said confidently.

Kurama smirked and took a puff of weed. "We'll see boys? Good thing I like boys."

"Good thing you like boys like me," the drag queen replied, wrapping his arms around Kurama's waist.

"Yusuke, it's Christmas. Don't stay in the house all day," Kurama said, and started to leave. "C'mon, hun," he called to Touya.

"Bye," Touya said, and waved as he sashayed out of the loft.

Hiei threw a scarf around his neck. "Listen to Kurama. You really need to get out more." He grabbed his camera. Then he, too, left.


	5. The Tango

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Kitty- _Yes_, the character of Collins _is_ black…and _is_ gay…and Angel _is_ his drag queen lover…so you're not going insane XD

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I've written up to 'Over the Moon so far (that's 42 pages!) and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 5**

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Shizuru:** Joanne Jefferson (lesbian; lawyer)

**Botan:** Maureen Johnson (lesbian; performing artist)

This song was originally called "The Tango Maureen" but as Botan's name is not Maureen, and does not rhyme with Maureen…I had to change the lyric to "Drama Queen" to make the rhyming work. It fits the way I sing it, so…if you're singing along, make it fit as best you can.

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

Hiei didn't have that far to walk to get to the performance space. He went inside, turned on his camera and said, "And so…into the abyss that is the lot. A small stage is partially set up…"

He focused on the stage at the other end of the huge room. On the stage, there were many pieces of complex equipment. A brunette woman wearing a suit and tie was muttering, "I went to Harvard for this…" while hunched over a huge mass of cables.

"…and that must be the infamous Shizuru. Close on Hiei's nosedive…will he get out of here alive?" Hiei turned the camera off, took a deep breath, and approached the stage.

Shizuru noticed him and looked up. "Hiei?" she asked.

"Yeah, hi. I guess you're Shizuru. Botan said she'd be here."

She glared at him and sighed. "Don't hold your breath…I told her _not_ to call you."

He raised an eyebrow. "Well, it's typical of Botan to do what people ask her not to." He climbed up on the stage to look at the equipment. "Can I help anyway?"

"I've hired an engineer," she answered arrogantly.

"Oh, well…nice to have met you." He started to quickly leave.

Clenching her fists in frustration, Shizuru called, "Wait!"

The filmmaker turned.

"The engineer…he's three hours late."

Hiei smirked, and tango music began to play.

"The sample won't delay but the cable—"

"There's another way," Hiei interrupted, going back to the equipment. "Say something, anything."

Shizuru tapped the mike and said, "Test One, Two, Three…"

"Anything but _that_."

The woman rolled her eyes. "This is weird."

"It's weird," Hiei agreed.

"Very weird."

"Fuckin' weird."

"I'm so mad that I don't know what to do," Shizuru sang in rhythm to the tango music. "Fighting with microphones, freezing down to my bones, and to top it all off, I'm with _you_."

"Feel like going insane, got a fire in your brain, and you're thinking of drinking gasoline?" Hiei asked.

"As a matter of fact…"

"Honey, I know this act. It's the tango of the drama queen." Suddenly Hiei broke into a strange tango-like hip-and-arm movement. Shizuru jumped back in surprise.

"The Tango Drama Queen!" Hiei sang, "It's a dark, dizzy merry-go-round. As she keeps you dangling…"

"You're wrong," Shizuru interjected.

"…your heart she is mangling…"

"It's different with _me_."

"…and you toss and you turn, cause her cold eyes can burn, yet you yearn and you churn and rebound!"

Shizuru nodded slowly. "I think I know what you mean."

Both sang, "The Tango Drama Queen."

Hiei asked, "Has she ever pouted her lips and called you…_Pookie_?"

She began to walk away from him. "Never!"

"Have you ever doubted a kiss or two?"

Shizuru tensed. "This is…spooky." She whipped around to him. "Did you swoon when she walked through the door?"

"Every time, so be cautious."

The brunette woman gasped, "Did she moon over other boys?"

"_More_ than moon…"

"I'm getting nauseous."

Both froze in place, the same idea in each of their heads. They stared into each others eyes, and Hiei arched an eyebrow mischievously. Smirking, he took off his jacket and tossed it aside. Shizuru hesitantly did the same. They placed their arms around each other and began to dance, with Hiei leading.

"Where'd you learn to tango?" Hiei asked.

"With the French Ambassador's daughter in her dorm room at Miss Porter's. And you?"

Hiei sighed. "With…Nanette Himmelfarb, the rabbi's daughter, at the Scarsdale Jewish Community Center."

They tangoed on, Hiei still leading the dance.

"You're Jewish?" asked Shizuru, cocking an eyebrow.

"As strange as it may seem…yes, I am. Not very religious, though."

"I thought as much."

Shizuru switched places with Hiei, so that she led.

"It's…hard to do this backwards," Hiei commented, stumbling slightly and looking down at his feet.

Shizuru dipped him back. "You should try it in heels." She dropped him to the floor and yelled, "She cheated!"

"She cheated," Hiei agreed once again, mentally thanking no one in particular that he hadn't cracked his head on the concrete.

"Botan cheated!"

"Fuckin' cheated!"

"I'm defeated; I should give up right now!"

Hiei grabbed her arm, and she pulled him up.

"Gotta look on the bright side with all of your might—"

"I'd fall for her still anyhow!"

They both sang, "When you're dancing her dance, you don't stand a chance. Her grip of romance makes you fall!"

Hiei said, "So you think, "Might as well…"

"…dance a tango to hell," Shizuru finished.

"At least I'll have tangoed at all," they sang in unison, and continued to tango together.

"The Tango Drama Queen! Gotta dance till your diva is through. You pretend to believe her, cause in the end you can't leave her! But the end, it will come, still you have to play dumb till you're glum and you bum and turn blue!"

"Why do we love when she's mean?" he asked.

"And she can be so obscene," she added.

Hiei flipped a switch on the digital delay. "Try the mike!"

"My drama queen," Shizuru said into the mike, and 'queen' echoed like it was supposed to.

"And you're patched."

"Thanks."

"You know…I feel great now!" Hiei exclaimed.

"I feel lousy," Shizuru groaned.

They both shook their heads and sang, "The Tango—"

The music stopped as the phone rang. Shizuru picked it up. "Hi honey. Yes, Hiei got here. Yes, we're…Pookie? You never called me Pookie…"

Hiei gave her an "I-told-you-so" look.

Shizuru glared at him. "No, forget it. We're patched." She hung up.

"Poo-kie," Hiei teased.

Shizuru raised her eyebrows in an intimidating expression. "Shut up."

The filmmaker grinned, quite pleased with himself for striking such a tender chord.


	6. Life Support

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I've written up to 'Over the Moon so far (that's 42 pages!) and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 4**

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Hagiri:** Steve (member of Life Support group)

**Matari: **Gordon (member of Life Support group)

**Ayame: **Allie (member of Life Support group)

**Genkai: **Pam (member of Life Support group)

**Kaito:** random member of Life Support group

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Jin:** Paul (leader of Life Support group)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

Hiei left the performance space. He walked a couple of blocks and found the address of the old building where Kurama had said their Life Support meeting was held.

Inside, a group of people were seated in circle, introducing themselves. Hiei quietly entered the room so as not to draw attention to himself.

"Hagiri," one punk-looking guy with short, black hair and a dice earring said.

"Matari," said a shy boy, about eighteen or nineteen, with dirty blond hair and blue eyes.

"Ayame," a woman said. She was pale and had long, black hair.

"Genkai," an older woman stated.

"Kaito," said a man with dark, curly hair and glasses.

"Hi, I'm Angel," said Touya, still dressed in the Santa drag. Then, surprisingly, he pulled off his black wig, revealing his dyed-blue-and-turquoise hair. "But you can call me Touya."

"Shuichi," Kurama said. Then he corrected, "Kurama."

"I'm Jin," said the group leader, a flamboyant yet serious young man with flaming red hair, sky-blue eyes, and an Irish accent. "Let's begin."

Hiei tried to silently place his things on an empty chair in the back of the room, but his camera clunked loudly against the wood.

The group turned to look at him.

"Sorry…" he said, blushing. "Excuse me…oops…"

"And you are?" Jin asked.

"Oh, I—I'm not—I'm just here to—" he looked down at his camera, and then back at the group. They were still staring at him.

He shook his head. "I don't have—I mean, I'm here with—"

Touya smiled slightly and gave him a little wave.

Feeling even more out of place, the filmmaker rambled, "Um—Hiei. Hiei. I'm—Hiei! Well—this is quite an operation." He picked up his camera. "Does anyone mind if I—um— film some of this for a documentary?"

The group exchanged looks. A few shook their heads, and others shrugged.

"Not at all. Make yourself comfortable, Hiei," Jin said kindly.

Hiei started up his camera.

"Who would like to begin?" Jin asked.

One or two group members threw cautious looks to Hiei's camera. Then, the dirty blond teenager raised his hand. "I…just found out that my T-cells are low…and I regret that news. I guess I'm a little scared."

"Well, Matari," Jin answered, "how are you feeling today?"

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly that. How do you feel today?"

Matari glanced at the camera and said, "I'm okay, I guess."

"Is that all?" Jin pressed.

The teen hesitated. "Well…it is the best I've felt in a long time."

"Then why choose fear?" Jin asked.

Matari raised an eyebrow. "Are you serious? I'm a New Yorker! Fear's my life!"

The group chuckled in unison. Then, music started to play in the background.

Matari stood and sang, "Look, I find some of what you teach suspect—because I'm used to relying on intellect—but I try to open up to what I don't know…"

Unbeknownst to the group, Yusuke joined in from his seat at the loft window, "…because reason says I should have died three years ago…"

The rest of the group stood and joined hands, singing, "There's only us, there's only this. Forget regret, or life is yours to miss. No other road, no other way. No day but today."

Hiei zoomed in on Kurama and Touya smiling softly at each other. Then he stopped filming.


	7. Out Tonight, Another Day

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I've written halfway through 'La Vie Boheme' so far (that's 44 pages!) and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 7**

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Keiko:** Mimi Marquez (exotic dancer; junkie; HIV positive)

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

The sky outside had darkened considerably. On a city street not too far from the apartments, a strip club had already begun to bustle with activity. The name CAT SCRATCH was lit in colorful lights in the front of the club. Inside, the tables were packed, the stage was crawling with dancers, and music was blaring.

The club's star, Keiko, entered the stage on the top platform in a leopard-print robe. The spotlight landed on her, and the customers cheered.

"What's the time?" she sang. "Well, it's gotta be close to midnight. My body's talking to me, it says, "Time for danger!""

She slid the robe off, and tossed it aside. Underneath was an extremely revealing, black-leather-and-lace outfit. Men hooted and whistled.

She grinned. "It says, "I wanna commit a crime…wanna be the cause of a fight! I wanna put on a tight skirt and flirt with a stranger!""

She slid down a pole and began to dance seductively.

"I've had a knack, from way back, at breaking the rules once I learn the game. Get up, life's too quick, I know someplace sick where this chick'll dance in the flames! We don't need any money—I always get in for free. You can get in too, if you get in with me…let's go out tonight! I have to go out tonight! You wanna play? Let's run away! We won't be back before it's New Year's Day! Take me out tonight—meow…ha!"

Later on in the evening, she left the club for her apartment, but continued to sing the song form her performance:

"When I get a wink from the doorman, do you know how lucky you'll be? That you're on line with the feline of Avenue B! Let's go out tonight! I have to go out tonight! You wanna prowl—be my night owl? Well, take my hand we're gonna howl, out tonight!"

She entered her apartment and took off her coat. She was no longer dressed in her work outfit. Instead, she wore a black mini-dress with fishnet stockings and high-heeled black boots. She went to her window, which opened out onto the fire escape.

"In the evening, I've got to roam—can't sleep in the city of neon and chrome! Feels to damn much like home when I hear the babies cry…"

She climbed out onto the fire escape and leaned over the railing.

"...so let's find a bar so dark we forget who we are! And all the scars of the nevers and maybes die! Let's go out tonight! Have to go out tonight!"

Suddenly she had an idea. She began to slink up the ladder toward Hiei and Yusuke's loft.

"You're sweet! Wanna hit the street? You wanna wail at the moon like a cat in heat? Just take me out tonight!"

She reached the loft. Yusuke was sitting inside alone, strumming his guitar. He turned when he heard something at the window and did a double take when he saw it was her.

"Please take me out tonight!" Keiko begged through the glass.

She pushed an unlocked window open and climbed inside. "Don't forsake me—out tonight!"

Yusuke gaped at her. His mouth twitched in a small smile, but it was gone in an instant.

Not discouraged, she pulled herself onto the table where he was seated and slunk toward him. "I'll let you make me—out tonight! Tonight—tonight—tonight!"

She flung her arms around his neck and began to kiss him deeply. At first he was shocked and didn't respond, but he quickly recoiled and sang in response:

"Who do you think you are barging in on me and my guitar? Little girl, hey! The door is that way! You better go, you know the fire's out anyway. Take your powder, take your candle—your sweet whisper—I just can't handle! Well, take your hair in the moonlight—your brown eyes—goodbye, goodnight!"

He quickly walked to the door and shoved it open. Leaning against the doorframe, he sang softly, "I should tell you, I should tell you…"

She slowly came up behind him.

"I should tell you, I should—NO!" he shouted when he felt her hand on his shoulder. He swung around in anger and sang:

"Another time! Another place! Our temperature would climb—there'd be a long embrace! We'd do another dance—it'd be another play. Looking for romance? Come back another day!"

He ushered her out the door. "Another day!"

"The heart may freeze," Keiko argued, "or it can burn. The pain will ease if I can learn. There is no future, there is no past. I live this moment as my last…"

She grasped his hands and encouraged, "There's only us, there's only this. Forget regret or life is yours to miss. No other road, no other way. No day but today."

Yusuke yanked his hands away. "Excuse me if I'm off track, but if you're so wise then tell me: Why do you need smack? Take your needle, take your fancy prayer—don't forget, get the moonlight out of your hair! Long ago you might've lit up my heart—but the fire's dead and it ain't never gonna start!"

He grabbed her shoulders and forced her onto the staircase. "Another time, another place. The words would only rhyme—we'd be in outer space. It'd be another song—we'd sing another way. You wanna prove me wrong? Come back another day."

After giving him a sincere look of hurt, she descended the stairs.

"Another day!" he yelled after her.

She ran outside and looked up to the loft. He soon came out onto the balcony and was surprised to find her standing in the middle of the street.

"There's only us," she insisted, "only tonight! We must let go to know what's right! No other course, no other way! No day but today!"

Yusuke looked beyond Keiko to see Kurama, Hiei, and Touya walking back to the apartment from their Life Support meeting. The three joined her in singing, "I can't control…"

The guitarist put a hand to his head and sang to himself, "Control your temper…"

"…my destiny."

"She doesn't see!"

"I trust my soul…"

"Who says that there's a soul?"

"…my only goal is just to be."

"Just let me be!" Yusuke shouted, clutching the balcony railing.

Hiei, Kurama, Touya, and Keiko sang, "There's only now, there's only here. Give in to love, or live in fear. No other path, no other way.

At the same time, Yusuke sang, "Who do you think you are barging in on my and my guitar? Little girl, hey! The door is that way!"

"No day but today," Keiko maintained.

"The fire's out anyway!" insisted Yusuke.

"No day but today…"

"Take your powder, take your candle!"

"No day but today…"

"Take your brown eyes, your pretty smile, your silhouette!"

"No day but today…"

"Another time, another place, another rhyme, a warm embrace!"

"No day but today…"

"Another dance! Another way! Another chance! Another day!"

"No day but today!"

As the song finished, Yusuke angrily stormed into the loft and slammed the window shut behind him. Tears began to stream from Keiko's eyes. She turned to Touya, who warmly embraced her.

Hiei, shaking his head in disappointment, said goodnight to Kurama and Touya. He eyed Keiko for a moment. He was sure he had seen her somewhere before…

Trying to place her, he went inside to find Yusuke lying on the couch, refusing to talk about anything that had happened between him and Keiko.


	8. Will I?

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I promise, I'll reply to your reviews as soon as I find time between school, life, and writing this fanfic. Just know that I sincerely appreciate all your kind comments and constructive criticisms.

I've written halfway through 'La Vie Boheme' so far (that's 44 pages!) and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 8**

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Hagiri:** Steve (member of Life Support group)

**Matari: **Gordon (member of Life Support group)

**Ayame: **Allie (member of Life Support group)

**Genkai: **Pam (member of Life Support group)

**Kaito:** random member of Life Support group

**Jin:** Paul (leader of Life Support group)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

The next day, Hiei left the loft with Kurama and Touya to go to another Life Support meeting.

Yusuke was left alone, sitting by the window with his guitar. He strummed a few chords and softly sang, "I'm writing one great song before I…"

His throat closed as he fought back tears. Thrusting his guitar to the side, he threw on a jacket and left the loft.

At the Life Support meeting, Hagiri stood and sang, "Will I lose my dignity? Will someone care? Will I wake tomorrow from this nightmare?"

"Will I lose my dignity?" sang Kurama, Touya, and Matari together, standing as well. "Will someone care? Will I wake tomorrow from this nightmare?"

They began again, with Hagiri this time. "Will I lose my dignity?"

"Will I lose my dignity?" repeated Hiei, standing off to the side with his camera.

"Will someone care?"

"Will someone care?"

"Will I wake tomorrow from…"

"Will I wake tomorrow from…"

"...this nightmare?"

"…this nightmare?"

"Will I lose my dignity?" began Kurama, Touya, Hagiri, and Matari.

"Will I lose my dignity?" Hiei repeated.

Jin and the two women, Genkai and Ayame, joined in, "Will I lose my dignity?"

"Will someone care?"

"Will someone care?"

"Will someone care?"

"Will I wake tomorrow from…"

"Will I wake tomorrow from…"

"Will I wake tomorrow from…"

"...this nightmare?"

"…this nightmare?"

"…this nightmare?"

"Will I lose my dignity?" Touya, Kurama, Matari, and Hagiri began again.

Hiei repeated, "Will I lose my dignity?"

Jin, Genkai, and Ayame sang, "Will I lose my dignity?"

As they sang through once again, the front doors opened. Yusuke walked inside and hesitantly joined the circle, standing between Touya and Kurama. They both smiled and slung an arm around each of his shoulders.

The cycle had begun again. This time, Yusuke joined on the end.

As they sang it through one last time, the different risings, fallings, lyrics, and pitches of the group members mixed and became one voice, one beautiful noise.


	9. Santa Fe

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I promise, I'll reply to your reviews as soon as I find time between school, life, and writing this fanfic. Just know that I sincerely appreciate all your kind comments and constructive criticisms.

I've written halfway through 'La Vie Boheme' so far (that's 44 pages!) and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 9**

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

Kurama, Touya, Hiei, and Yusuke left the building together.

"I'm really glad you came," Hiei said, clapping Yusuke on the shoulder.

"I told you he'd change his tune," laughed Touya.

As they walked toward the nearest subway station, they stumbled across a middle-aged homeless woman being hit by a police officer with his nightstick. Hiei immediately took out his camera. "Smile for Ted Koppel, Officer!" he shouted.

The police officer, upon seeing the camera, quickly retreated. The homeless woman, on the other hand, began yelling at Hiei.

"Who the fuck do you think you are?" she asked. "I don't need no goddamn help from some bleeding-heart cameraman! My life ain't for you to make a name for yourself on!"

"Easy, sugar, easy," Touya said softly. "He was just trying to—"

"Just trying to use me to kill his guilt!" screeched the woman. "It's not that kind of movie, honey! This town's full of motherfuckin' artists!"

She then adjusted her ragged clothing and calmly asked, "Hey, artist. You got a dollar?"

The four friends exchanged looks, and Hiei shook his head.

"I thought not," the woman said, and trudged away.

The four of them once again traded glances and raised eyebrows as a light beat erupted in the background.

"New York City," Touya sighed as they entered the subway station, "center of the universe!"

"Sing it, girl," Kurama encouraged.

"Times are shitty, but I'm pretty sure they can't get worse."

"I hear you," Hiei muttered.

"It's a comfort to know, when you're singing the hit-the-road blues," Touya said enthusiastically, "that anywhere else you could possibly go after New York would be…a pleasure cruise."

"Now you're talking," Kurama said.

The four of them boarded the subway train, which wasn't very full. Hiei and Yusuke sat next to each other. Touya sat opposite them. Kurama leaned against one of the three poles down the center of the car, sporting a smile that made him seem doped up.

"Well, I'm thwarted by a metaphysic puzzle," Kurama sang slowly, in an extremely deep tone. "And I'm sick of grading papers—that I know. I'm shouting in my sleep; I need a muzzle. And all this misery pays no salary, so…"

He picked up an empty paper cup and held it out as if asking for tips.

"…let's open up a restaurant in Santa Fe. Sunny Santa Fe would be nice. We'll open up a restaurant in Santa Fe, and leave this to the roaches and mice."

He dropped the cup and spun around the pole a few times, singing, "O-oh whoa-oh o-oh oh-whoa. O-oh ooh-oh oh ohh," or, in other words, holding some 'Oh whoa' notes.

"You teach?" Touya asked, crossing one leg over the other.

"Yeah, I teach—computer age philosophy—but my students would rather watch TV," Kurama answered.

Touya shrugged. "America."

"America!" answered the other three.

Kurama pointed at Touya. "You're a sensitive aesthete—brush the sauce onto the meat…"

He pointed to Yusuke. "You can make the menu sparkle with rhyme…"

He looked back to Touya. "You can drum a gentle drum, and I can seat guests as they come—chatting not about Heidegger, but wine!"

He spun around a few times and sang, "Let's open up a restaurant in Santa Fe."

"Santa Fe!" the other three echoed.

"Our labors would reap financial gains."

"Gains, gains, gains," repeated Hiei, Kurama, and Touya in succession.

"We'll open up a restaurant in Santa Fe."

"Santa Fe!"

"And save from devastation our brains."

Kurama pulled Touya up, and they began swinging around the poles. Kurama even began pulling random people from their seats and spinning them around.

"We'll pack up all our junk and fly so far away," they all sang. "Devote ourselves to projects that sell. We'll open up a restaurant in Santa Fe...forget this cold Bohemian hell!"

After some 'oh whoa's and dancing, Kurama settled himself between Yusuke and Hiei. "Do you know the way to Santa Fe? You know…tumble weeds…prairie dogs…"

"Yeah," they all breathed.


	10. I'll Cover You

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I promise, I'll reply to your reviews as soon as I find time between school, life, and writing this fanfic. Just know that I sincerely appreciate all your kind comments and constructive criticisms.

I've written most of 'La Vie Boheme' so far (that's 47 pages!) and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 10**

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

All four friends exited the subway station on a street bustling with vendors, cops, and random people trying to get home from work.

"Well, I'm off to help Botan with the sound check," Hiei said. "I'll see you guys at the performance later."

He started to run off, and then called back, "C'mon, Yusuke, you can help me!"

The guitarist rolled his eyes and reluctantly followed him.

"Alone at last," Touya sighed, twining his fingers into Kurama's.

"I thought they'd never leave," the redhead agreed as they walked along.

"You know, I've been hearing violins all day," Touya said, using his other hand to brush long strands of his new black wig out of his eyes.

"Anything to do with me?" Kurama teased. "Are we officially a thing?"

Touya stopped and spun around into his lover. "Darling, we're _everything_." He pecked Kurama a kiss on the lips as a new beat erupted from the invisible band.

"Live in my house," Touya sang, "I'll be your shelter. Just pay me back with one thousand kisses. Be my lover, and I'll cover you."

Kurama grinned and sang back, "Open your door; I'll be your tenant. Don't got much baggage to lay at your feet. But sweet kisses I've got to spare—I'll be there, and I'll cover you."

Together, they sang, "I think they meant it when they sand you can't buy love. Now I know you can rent it—a new lease, you are my love on life. Be my life!"

They began to do a short dance in the middle of the sidewalk.

"Just slip me on," they sang, "I'll be your blanket. Wherever—whatever—I'll be your coat!"

"You'll be my king, and I'll be your castle!" Touya exclaimed.

"No, you'll be my queen, and I'll be your moat," Kurama responded.

"I think they meant it when they said you can't buy love. Now I know you can rent it—a new lease you are my love on life. All my life I've longed to discover something as true as this is!"

"So with a thousand sweet kisses…" Kurama sang.

"If you're cold and you're lonely…"

"…I'll cover you. With a thousand sweet kisses…"

"You've got one nickel only…"

"…I'll cover you!"

They switched, and Touya sang, "With a thousand sweet kisses…"

"When you're worn out and tired…"

"…I'll cover you. With a thousand sweet kisses…"

"When your heart has expired!"

They spun into each others arms and exclaimed, "Oh, lover, I'll cover you!"

Kurama yelled, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!"

"Oh, lover," they sang. "I'll cover you…"

Touya quickly closed the gap between them by flinging his arms around Kurama's neck and pressing his lips passionately against the redhead's. People started to stare, but the lovers didn't mind. They broke away from the kiss smiling.


	11. Christmas Bells

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I promise, I'll reply to your reviews as soon as I find time between school, life, and writing this fanfic. Just know that I sincerely appreciate all your kind comments and constructive criticisms.

I've written halfway through the play so far, meaning I just finished with 'La Vie Boheme B' (that's 53 pages!), and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

**This scene only occurs in the play and is actually meant for the stage.** What I mean by this is that this scene is extremely hard to capture with mediums such as film and writing, and can only be experienced fully if seen on stage. It is not in the movie. Despite the difficulty this scene presents, I tried my best to capture it as well as I could in words. I'm sorry if I didn't succeed, but I couldn't leave this out. It's a brilliant song, and those of you who have heard it can attest to that. I just love how there are so many individual scenes, conversations, and songs are going on, but everything blends so wonderfully together so that, even if you tried your hardest, you couldn't just pick out and follow one event straight through. You pick up on something else, and then get completely lost in the commotion. Personally, I think it's fabulous.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 11**

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Keiko:** Mimi Marquez (exotic dancer; junkie; HIV positive)

**Karasu:** "The man" (drug dealer)

**Koenma:** Benjamin Coffin III (owns the apartments and the lot next to them through marriage to a wealthy woman)

**Botan:** Maureen Johnson (lesbian; performing artist)

**Shizuru:** Joanne Jefferson (lesbian; lawyer)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

A choir of homeless people in St. Mark's Place, hoping for some post-Christmas charity, sang, "Christmas bells are ringing! Christmas bells are ringing! Christmas bells are ringing—on TV! At Saks!"

A man with a squeegee ran up to cars at the stoplight. "Honest living! Honest living! Honest living! Honest living!" he shouted.

"Can't you spare a dime or two?" the homeless begged passers-by in song. "Here but for the grace of God go you. You'll be merry, I'll be merry—though 'merry' ain't in my vocabulary! No sleigh bells; no Santa Clause; no Yule long; no tinsel; no holly; no hearth; no—"

One man shouted, "Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer!"

"—Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer!" the others echoed. "No room at the Holiday Inn, oh no! And it's beginning to snow!"

Street vendors began to shout their wares.

"Hats!"

"Bats!"

"Shoes!"

"Booze!"

"Mountain bikes!"

"Potpourri!"

"Leather bags!"

"Girly mags!"

"Forty-fives!"

"AZT!"

"No one's buying," one older vendor complained. "I feel like crying."

"No room at the Holiday Inn, oh no!" the homeless sang. "And it's beginning to snow!"

Off to the side, Touya and Kurama were looking at the items a coat vendor was selling.

"How about a fur—in perfect shape—owned by an MBA from uptown?" the vendor asked. "I've got a tweed broken in by a greedy broker who went broke—and then broke down."

"You really don't have to do this," Kurama protested as Touya looked through the coats.

"Hush your mouth. Yours was stolen, and it's cold. Consider it my Christmas gift to you."

"I don't deserve you, Touya," the redhead sighed. "All you do is give. Why won't you give me some way to show how you've touched me so?"

Touya looked up from his search and smiled. "Kiss me—it's beginning to snow."

Kurama obliged.

While they walked to the performance space, Yusuke was finally telling Hiei about his first encounter with Keiko.

"Let me get this straight," Hiei growled. "She asked you to light her candle, and she put on a pout…and then later she wanted you to take her out somewhere?"

"Right," Yusuke replied. "She was more than okay, but I got angry at her…I pushed her away…I just had to get her out of my sight."

"What's wrong with you?" Hiei exclaimed. "You said she was sweet!"

"Let's go eat," said Yusuke, changing the subject. "Might as well get fat…it's the one vice left before I die."

"Wait," Hiei hissed. "Isn't that her?"

"Botan?" Yusuke asked, hopeful it wasn't…

"Keiko!" Hiei muttered. "God, she's gorgeous. You should talk to her."

"No, I…"

But Hiei was pushing him toward her. "Hey, it's beginning to snow," he realized as a flake settled into Yusuke's hair.

A few cops standing around in the distance mournfully sang, "I was dreaming of a white, right Christmas…"

Some drug addicts, including Keiko, were following an extremely pale, raven-haired, purple-contacted man in a black trench coat.

"Follow the man, follow the man with his pockets full of the jam. Follow the man, follow the man—help me out, daddy, if you can!" they sang. "Got any C, man?"

"I'm cool," the dealer replied.

"Got any D, man?"

"I'm cool."

"Got any X? Any smack? Any horse—any jugie boogie, boy? Any blow?"

Keiko was passing money off to the drug dealer when Yusuke practically knocked her over.

"Hey," he said as he tried to both recover from the shove Hiei had given him and glare back at his roommate.

"Hey," Keiko replied, looking down.

"Look…I just wanted to apologize for the way I blew up the other night," said the musician.

"It's no big deal. Forget it."

"Well…can I make it up to you?"

She looked up at him. "How?"

"A few of us are getting together for dinner after the show in the lot tonight. Do you wanna come with me?"

Keiko smiled. "Sure. I'd like that."

"Hey, lover boy," the drug dealer snarled, pushing Yusuke aside. "You steal my client, and you die."

"Lay off, Karasu," Keiko said. "He's not—"

"You didn't miss me, and you won't miss her!" Yusuke shouted, shoving Karasu back. "Look around. You'll never lack for customers. C'mon, let's get outta here."

Keiko sent an apologetic glance to Karasu, and then left with Yusuke.

"I'm willin'—I'm illin'! I've gotta get my sickness off!" the junkies sang, crowding around the dealer.

Then, they spotted some cops. "Gotta run, gotta ride, gotta gun, gotta hide—gotta go!"

They scattered, and the drug dealer smiled innocently at the officers. "And it's beginning to snow," he sang.

Koenma drove down the street in his Range Rover. "Hi, baby," he said, talking to his wife on his cell phone. "Yes, the protest is on. One of the investors is coming? It's your father? Damn…well, wish me luck. Bye." He hung up and continued driving toward the lot.

"Hi," Hiei and Keiko said awkwardly upon meeting.

Yusuke said, "That's right, you haven't been officially introduced. Hiei, this is Keiko."

"I think we've met…before the other night, I mean," Hiei said, confused.

Keiko laughed. "That's what Yusuke said."

"She works at the Cat Scratch Club," Yusuke explained.

Recognition filled Hiei's face. "That's right…I used to go there…"

"Here's a new arrival," the coat vendor said to Touya, showing him a coat with a sleeve missing.

"That's my coat!" Kurama exclaimed, grabbing for it.

"We give discounts," the woman assured.

"Honey, the sleeve's missing. Let's get a better one," Touya soothed.

"But she's a thief!" Kurama shouted.

"Still, she brought us together."

Kurama sighed as Touya squeezed his hand. "Fine…I guess I'll take the leather."

Touya smiled. He kissed his lover again as Kurama slid the new leather coat over his shoulders.

"Anyway, we really should get to the lot," Hiei said.

"We're headed to Botan's performance," Yusuke said to Keiko.

"Who is Botan again?" Keiko asked.

"Hiei's ex," the guitarist replied.

"But I'm over her," Hiei said confidently.

A large squad of cops walked down the street toward the lot where they would be stationed for the protest. They sang a jumble of already forgotten Christmas carols as they walked:

"I was dreaming of a white, right Christmas! Just like the ones I used to know! Jingle bells—prison cells! Fa la la la la—fa la la la la! You have the right to remain—silent night, holy night! Fall on your knees—oh night divine—you'll do some time! Fa la la la la—fa la la la la…"

The homeless people continued to sing simultaneously:

"Christmas bells are swinging! Christmas bells are ringing! Christmas bells are singing—in my dreams—next year! Once you celebrate, you all go—to celebrate in Tuckahoe! You'll feel cheery, I'll feel cheery—though I don't really know that theory! No bathrobe; no Steuben glass; no cappuccino makers; no pearls, no diamonds; no "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire!" Chestnuts roasting on an open fire! No room and the Holiday Inn, oh no—"

At the same time, a group of junkies had come up to Karasu yet again, begging for their drugs:

"Got any C, man?" they sang. "Got any D, man? Got any B, man? Got any X? —crack? I'm willin'—I'm illin'—gotta get my sickness off! C-D, help me!"

Karasu saw the procession of cops coming down the street and tried to move away.

"Follow the man!" the junkies sang. "Follow the man—follow the man! Any crack, any X, any jugie boogie, boy, any blow, any X, any jugie boogie boy? Got any D, man? Got any C, man? Got any X—and crack—any jugie boogie?"

Back with the coat vendor, Touya was trying to bargain for Kurama's new coat.

"Twenty-five," the vendor said.

"Fifteen," said Touya.

"Twenty-five."

"Fifteen."

"Twenty-five."

"Fifteen."

"No way. Twenty-four."

"Fifteen."

"Twenty-four."

"Fifteen."

"Twenty-four."

"Fifteen."

"Not today. Twenty-three."

"Fifteen."

"Twenty-three."

"Fifteen. It's old."

"Twenty-two."

"Fifteen."

"Twenty-one."

"Fifteen."

"Seventeen."

"Fifteen."

Finally, the vendor relented. "Fifteen."

"Sold!" Touya exclaimed, and happily paid the woman.

Keiko smiled and tried to slide her hand into Yusuke's as they walked along.

Yusuke pulled away. "Let's—not—hold hands yet."

"Is that a warning?" Keiko teased.

"Nah, he just needs to take it slow," Hiei said.

As everything else was going on, Keiko and Yusuke looked at each other and softly sang, "I should tell you, I should tell you, I should tell you, I should tell you, I…"

Everyone reached the performance space at exactly the same time. They all sang, "And it's beginning to—and it's beginning to—and it's beginning to…"

A young, blue-haired woman dressed in motorcycle gear ran into the middle of everything. "Shizuru! Which way to the stage?" she shouted.

"…snow!" everyone sang, and music swelled a finale.


	12. Over the Moon

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I promise, I'll reply to your reviews as soon as I find time between school, life, and writing this fanfic. Just know that I sincerely appreciate all your kind comments and constructive criticisms.

I've written halfway through the play so far, meaning I just finished with 'La Vie Boheme B' (that's 53 pages!), and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'll probably post at least a chapter a day.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 12**

**Shizuru:** Joanne Jefferson (lesbian; lawyer)

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Keiko:** Mimi Marquez (exotic dancer; junkie; HIV positive)

**Botan:** Maureen Johnson (lesbian; performing artist)

**Koenma:** Benjamin Coffin III (owns the apartments and the lot next to them through marriage to a wealthy woman)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

Everyone gathered into the performance space.

Shizuru was atop a scaffolding, directing a light at the empty stage. Hiei, standing with Touya, Keiko, Kurama, and Yusuke, started filming.

Suddenly, a motorcycle engine revved. The crowd turned to the door, and Botan drove in atop a white motorcycle. The crowd cheered and applauded as she made her way to the stage.

Botan dismounted the bike and climbed onto the stage. She took off her helmet and shook out her long blue hair. A cow bell and a stick were attached to her tight black leather pants, and her black tank top was torn in places.

Everyone quieted down as she approached the microphone.

"Last night, I had a dream," she began. "I found myself in a desert called Cyberland. It was hot. My canteen had sprung a leak, and I was thirsty. Out of the abyss walked a cow—Elsie."

Some people chuckled. Botan smiled and went on:

"I asked if she had anything to drink. She said, "I'm forbidden to produce—milk! In Cyberland we only drink—"

Botan unhooked the wooden stick from her belt loop and hit the cow bell with it. "—Diet Coke!" she exclaimed into the mike, and 'coke' echoed. The audience laughed.

"She said…" Botan continued, and the crowd silenced again. The performer ran over to the equipment and pushed a button. Music began to play, and her voice came from the speakers, singing, "Leap of faith, leap of faith—leap of faith, leap of faith."

"…only thing to do is jump over the moon," the real Botan sang. She hit the Stop button and continued to quote the cow.

"They've closed everything real down—like barns, and troughs, and—performance spaces!" she exclaimed, looking to Koenma. "And replaced it all with lies, and rules, and…"

She hit the cow bell and stepped up the reverb mike again. "…virtual life." ('Life' echoed.) "But there is a way out."

She pressed the Play button again, and the speakers let out, "Leap of faith, leap of faith—leap of faith, leap of faith."

"Only thing to do is jump over the moon," Botan sang. The crowd chuckled as a bunch of yellow lights in the shape of a crescent moon lowered behind her.

"I gotta get outta here!" she yelled, still quoting the cow, grabbing her throat with both hands and whipping her upper body back and forth as she shouted, "It's like I'm being tied to the hood of a yellow rental truck—being packed in with fertilizer—and fuel oil—pushed over a cliff by a suicidal Mickey Mouse!"

The audience roared with laughter, and she continued to yell, "I gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta…"

She took a huge gulp of air, and kept pushing her body back and forth, "…gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta find a way..."

She stopped thrashing and panted for breath as the audience clapped a little.

"…to jump over the moon. Only thing to do is jump over the moon," Botan sang. She continued to narrate the story:

"Then, a little bulldog entered. His name, we have learned, was—Koenma."

Koenma rolled his eyes as she stared at him.

"And although he once had principles, he abandoned them to live as a lapdog to a wealthy daughter of the revolution."

She started up a beat by snapping her fingers. "A one-two-three, "That's bull," he said, "Ever since the cat took up the fiddle that cow's been—jumpy. The dish and the spoon were evicted from the table and eloped. She's had trouble with the milk and that moon ever since. Maybe it's a—""

Botan pressed her hands to her chest.

""—female thing. Cause who'd wanna leave Cyberland anyway? Walls ain't so bad. The dish and the spoon, for instance. They're down on their luck; they come knockin' on MY doghouse door and I say, 'Not in MY backyard, utensils! Go back to China!'""

"Bee dee bong!" her voice yelled through the speakers.

Botan sang, ""The only way out is up," Elsie whispered to me. "A leap of faith! Still thirsty?""

She moved up to the mike once again. "Parched." The mike reverbed.

""Have some milk." And I lowered myself beneath her swollen udder—and sucked the sweetest milk I had ever tasted!"

She made a slurping noise.

""Climb on board!" she said. And as a harvest moon rose over Cyberland, we reared back—we sprang into a gallop—leaping—out of orbit—I awoke, singing…"

"Leap of faith, leap of faith—leap of faith, leap of faith," echoed the speakers.

"Only thing to do," Botan sang. "Only thing to do is jump! Only thing to do is jump over the moon. Only thing to do is jump over the moon—over the moon—over the—"

Suddenly, she began to moo like a cow. "Mooooo!" she shouted, gesturing to the audience. "Moo with me," she said. "Moooo!"

One man hesitantly responded, "Moo…"

"That's it! Moo with me!" Botan encouraged.

Random "Moo"s broke out in the crowd.

"Moo!" shouted the performer. "Moo! Let me hear you, New York City!"

More and more people responded, until the whole audience was mooing like crazy.

Then, one man accidentally knocked into a police officer. "Hey, watch it," the cop said, shoving the man away.

Other members of the audience saw the cop pushing the man and thought it was a deliberate attack.

Through the eyes of other police officers, it looked like a lunatic was trying to knock their partner over.

Needless to say, a riot began. Police began hauling people away as the crowd fought. People began chucking empty beer bottles, rocks, and whatever else they could find.

Shizuru almost got hit by a glass bottle, which instead smashed into the light she had been directing.

Botan, horrified, tried to calm everyone from her place on the stage. "Please, everyone, stay calm! This is a peaceful protest! Please!"

One of the officers grabbed Touya and tried to drag him away.

"Let her go!" Kurama shouted, but Touya was fully capable of defending himself. He pushed back on the cop holding his arms and kicked another square in the chest.

Kurama grabbed his hand, and they ran for the exit. Yusuke and Keiko left as well. "We'll meet you at the Life Café!" Yusuke yelled over his shoulder.

Hiei dodged a large chunk of flying concrete and kept filming.


	13. La Vie Boheme

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. I promise, I'll reply to your reviews as soon as I find time between school, life, and writing this fanfic. Just know that I sincerely appreciate all your kind comments and constructive criticisms.

I've written halfway through the play so far, meaning I just finished with 'La Vie Boheme B' (that's 53 pages!), and I'm trying to post chapters by song. I'm trying to get the chapters out as often as possible, and I'm sorry I'm so late with this one, but I've gotten somewhat lost on the confusing path of life.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 12**

**Shizuru:** Joanne Jefferson (lesbian; lawyer)

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Keiko:** Mimi Marquez (exotic dancer; junkie; HIV positive)

**Botan:** Maureen Johnson (lesbian; performing artist)

**Koenma:** Benjamin Coffin III (owns the apartments and the lot next to them through marriage to a wealthy woman)

**Sakyo:** Mr. Grey (the father of Koenma's wife, Allison aka Muffy; Koenma's biggest investor)

**Sazuka:** manager of the Life Café

**Shishiwakamaru:** gay waiter in the Life Café

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

"That fuck!" Botan yelled as she and Shizuru quickly walked down the block to the Life Café. "He calls the police, he screws up my show, he gets a bunch of people arrested…"

"Calm down, sweetie," Shizuru soothed. "It really wasn't that bad."

Botan was about to respond, but they arrived at the café, where Yusuke, Keiko, Touya, and Kurama were waiting.

"Is everyone okay?" Touya asked.

"Everyone but Hiei. Has anyone seen him?" Yusuke replied.

Everyone shook their heads.

Yusuke looked concerned, but said, "I…I'm sure he's fine. Let's wait for him inside."

As they walked in the door, introductions were made all around. They waited for a table.

Before the waiter could get to them, Hiei burst in the door. "The entire riot is going to be on the eleven o'clock news!"

"What do you mean?" Botan asked.

"They bought my footage of the protest!"

Botan was thrilled. "Baby, that's wonderful!" She practically leapt onto Hiei and planted a huge kiss on his lips. "How can I ever repay you?" she exclaimed, holding his face in her hands.

Shizuru, with an angry expression on her face, broke them apart. "Let the boy buy us dinner," she said.

"No, please no—not tonight," the manager, a tall blond with 'Sazuka' on his name tag said. "You just can't stay."

"Why not?" Hiei asked.

"Because…we have important customers here tonight. Besides, all you do is sit around, and you never even order anything."

"Hey, that's a lie!" Hiei protested. "I had a tea the other day!"

"You couldn't pay," Sazuka stated bluntly.

"Oh, yeah…" Hiei said, backing off.

"Well, tonight we can!" Touya exclaimed, taking out a wad of twenties. "Ka-pow!"

"Fine, just…don't move the tables…" Sazuka tried to say, but Kurama grinned and pinched the manager's cheeks lovingly.

Botan was already shouting, "Hey, everyone! Let's move the tables together!"

Other customers, all of whom had attended the protest, were happy to oblige. Only one table did not.

"Koenma—the enemy of Avenue A," Botan said, sidling up to the table where Koenma and an investor, his wife's father Sakyo, were seated.

"What brings a mogul in his own mind to the Life Café?" Yusuke scoffed.

"I would like to propose a toast to Botan's noble try," Koenma said, sarcastically raising a glass. "It went well—"

Botan cut him off, flipped him off, and sat down next to Shizuru. "Go to hell."

Koenma rose and went to stand by her seat at the long table. "Tell me…not counting the homeless…how many tickets weren't comped?"

Botan made as if to hit him, but Shizuru held her back.

"Why did Muffy—" Yusuke began, using their nickname for Koenma's wife.

"Allison," Koenma corrected.

"—miss the show?"

"There was a death in the family," Koenma replied.

Touya looked up at him curiously. "Who died?"

Koenma sighed. "Our Akita."

Hiei and Yusuke looked at each other. "Evita!" they exclaimed, and started cracking up. Kurama chuckled along.

Touya gasped at the realization that he had killed Koenma's dog. He immediately looked away and started twirling the hair of his black wig.

Some light music began to play in the background.

"You all make fun, yet I'm the one attempting to do some good—or do you really want a neighborhood where people piss on your stoop every night?" Koenma sang. "Bohemia—Bohemia's a fallacy in your head! This is Calcutta—Bohemia is dead."

He turned and walked back to his table. Hiei followed him, mocking the way Koenma walked.

When Koenma was seated, Hiei turned his back to him and placed his hands on the head of their table. Funeral music began to play.

"Dearly beloved, we gather here to say our good-byes," he sang, delivering a mock eulogy. He turned around as the people on either side of the table stood and held out their arms.

"Here she lies," Hiei sang, falling back onto their arms. They began passing him down the table. "No one knew her worth—the late, great daughter of Mother Earth—on these nights when we celebrate the birth in that little town of Bethlehem."

The other participants began rocking him back and forth as if he were in a cradle, and then helped him up.

"We raise our glass—you bet your ass to…"

Botan climbed up onto the table, turned her back to Koenma and Sakyo, and pulled down the back of her pants. Their mouths fell open as she mooned them. Grinning, she pulled her pants back up and jumped down off the table.

"…La Vie Boheme."

"La Vie Boheme!" the others sang, shaking their shoulders and heads to the beat. "La Vie Boheme! La Vie Boheme! La Vie Boheme!"

Hiei, still standing on the table, sang as if he were proposing a toast:

"To days of inspiration, playing hooky, making something outta nothing—the need to express, to communicate. To going against the grain, going insane, going mad! To loving tension, no pension—to more than one dimension! To starving for attention, hating convention, hating pretension—not to mention, of course, hating dear old mom and dad!"

He flipped onto his hands, and a few people caught his legs. He hand-walked down the table and continued:

"To riding your bike mid-day past the three-piece suits! To fruits! To no absolutes! To Absolut! To choice! To the village voice! To any passing fad!"

He got up and gestured to the crowd.

"To being an 'Us' for once…"

He pointed to Koenma and Sakyo.

"…instead of a 'Them'!"

Everyone sang, "La Vie Boheme!"

Botan and Shizuru stood at the head of the table, arms wrapped around each other. Shizuru's hands were sliding down to Botan's ass.

Sakyo coughed, and they turned.

"Hey, Mister," Botan said. "She's my sister." She then quickly thrust her hips into Shizuru's, and they walked away laughing.

A purple-haired waiter, whose name tag read 'Shishi' skipped to the head of the table while reading orders off his pad.

"So that's five miso soup, four seaweed salad, three soy burger dinner, two tofu dog platter, and one pasta with meatless balls?" he sang, sitting on the table and crossing one leg over the other.

"Ew," Yusuke commented in response to the meatless balls.

"It tastes the same," Kurama said.

"If you close your eyes," Keiko chuckled.

"And thirteen orders of fries—is that it here?" Shishi asked.

"Wine and beer!" everyone shouted. Shishi ran off to fulfill the orders.

Keiko and Touya jumped up onto the table and began dancing provocatively. They sang:

"To handcrafted beers made in local breweries! To yoga—to yogurt—to rice and beans and cheese! To leather, to dildos, to curry vindaloo! To huevos rancheros and Maya Angelou!"

Botan and Kurama also leapt onto the table. Kurama grabbed Botan waist from behind and swung her around. They danced and sang:

"Emotion, devotion—to causing a commotion—creation, vacation—"

Hiei then cut in as he, with a smirk on his face, began humping the table. "Mucho masturbation!" he shouted.

Sakyo turned away, disgusted.

Botan and Kurama continued, "Compassion, to fashion—to passion when it's new."

"To Sontag!" Kurama yelled.

"To Sondhiem!" Touya countered.

A group of lesbians, including Botan and Shizuru, gathered together at the head of the table. "To anything taboo!" they mocked, and dispersed.

Kurama, who was still up on the table, and Yusuke, who joined him, began to tango down toward Koenma and Sakyo. They sang, "Ginsburg, Dylan, Cunningham and Cage!"

They broke apart, and Kurama gestured to Yusuke with a little bow. "Lenny Bruce," he said.

Yusuke returned with favor with, "Langston Hughes."

Botan laid on the table and kicked her legs in the air. "To the stage!" she shouted.

Random people began chiming in:

"To Uta!"

"To Buddha!"

"Pablo Naruda, too!"

Hiei and Keiko, both on opposite sides of the table, slammed their palms down and sang in each other's faces, "Why Dorothy and Toto went over the rainbow to blow off Auntie Em!"

Everyone sang, "La Vie Boheme!"

Sakyo finally turned around to see Botan and Shizuru lying on the table, making out.

"Sisters?" Sakyo asked.

They both looked at him. "We're close," they said in unison, Botan resting her head on Shizuru's chest, and got off the table to reveal Touya lying on top of Kurama. They were making out as well.

Touya's head snapped up, and they both exclaimed, "Brothers!"

Everyone began to sing and dance.

"Bisexuals, trisexuals, homo sapiens, carcinogens, hallucinogens, men—"

Touya lifted up his skirt in the front.

"—Pee-wee Herman! German wine, turpentine, Gertrude Stein, Antonioni, Bertolucci, Kurosawa—"Carmina Burana!" To apathy, to entropy, to empathy, ecstasy—Vaclav Havel! The Sex Pistols! 8BC! To no shame—never playing the fame game—"

Kurama had collapsed to the floor, giddy and smoking his weed. Touya hauled him up as the redhead took a puff.

Blowing out smoke in the faces of Koenma and Sakyo, Kurama slurred, "To marijuana!"

Sakyo, appalled, bolted out of his chair and ran for the exit.

"To sodomy, it's between God and me," everyone else continued to sing. "To S&M!"

Koenma followed Sakyo to the door, shouting, "Waiter! Waiter! Waiter!"

"La Vie Boheme!" the crowd sang.

Touya helped Kurama onto the table.

"In honor of the death of Bohemia, an impromptu salon will commence immediately following dinner," Kurama announced. "Our rising star, Botan—just back from her spectacular one-night engagement at the 11th Street lot—will perform Native American tribal chants _backwards_ through her vocoder while accompanying herself on the electric cello—which she ain't never studied."

He shrugged and jumped down. Yusuke immediately took his place.

"And Hiei will preview his new documentary about his inability to hold an erection on the high holy days," the guitarist announced, smirking at his roommate.

Hiei raised an eyebrow, leapt onto the table, and shoved his roommate aside. Yusuke wasn't fazed. He spotted a guitar on display and retreated from the commotion.

Hiei proclaimed, "Let's not forget Keiko, who, clad only in bubble wrap, will perform her famous _lawn chair handcuff dance_ to the sounds of iced tea being stirred."

He then spotted Yusuke off to the side, already strumming the guitar. "And Yusuke will attempt to write a bittersweet, evocative song!" Hiei exclaimed.

Everyone went silent and stared at the guitarist. Yusuke glanced around, confused, before beginning to pluck out his favorite tune.

Hiei rolled his eyes. "That…_doesn't_ remind us of Musetta's Waltz."

The music started up again, and Touya strutted up and down the table, swinging his hips like a model.

Kurama declared, "Angel Dumott Schunard will model the latest fall fashions from Paris while accompanying herself on the ten gallon plastic pickle tub!"

Touya retorted, "And Kurama will recount his exploits as anarchist, including the tale of his successful reprogramming of the MIT virtual reality equipment to self-destruct as it broadcast the words:"

Everyone yelled, "ACTUAL REALITY! ACT UP—FIGHT AIDS!"

Keiko walked over to Yusuke, not looking too pleased.

"Excuse me. Did I do something wrong?" she asked him. "I get invited, then ignored—all night long!"

Yusuke replied, "I've been trying—I'm not lying. No one's perfect—I've got baggage!"

"Life's too short, babe, time is flying! I'm looking for baggage that goes with mine!"

Yusuke murmured, "I should tell you…"

Keiko growled, "I've got baggage, too!"

"…should tell you."

They both said, "Baggage, wine—"

"—and beer!" everyone else shouted.

Two beepers sounded off, signifying that it was time for meds to be taken. Both Yusuke and Keiko took the beepers from their belts.

"AZT break," Keiko sighed.

Yusuke gaped at her. "You?" he breathed, not wanting to believe that she was HIV-positive.

"Me," she replied, half smiling. "You?"

He nodded slowly. "Keiko," he whispered. He took her hand and led her outside.


	14. I Should Tell You

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. Just know that I sincerely appreciate all your kind comments and constructive criticisms.

I'm trying to get the chapters out as often as possible, and I'm sorry I'm so, so, SO late with this one, but I've once again gotten somewhat lost on the confusing path of life.

Also, for some reason, I can't stand this darn song. I almost wanted to cut it out completely. But alas, here it is…probably the shortest and most confusing and hateful song in the entire show.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 14**

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Keiko:** Mimi Marquez (exotic dancer; junkie; HIV positive)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

It was snowing. Yusuke grasped at Keiko's hands. Suddenly, understandably and yet unexplainably, everything was different.

"I should tell you I'm disaster," Yusuke sang. "I forget how to begin it."

"Let's just make this part go faster," responded Keiko. "I have yet to be in it. I should tell you…"

"I should tell you…"

"I should tell you…"

"I should tell you…"

Keiko smiled. "I should tell I blew the candle out just to get back in."

Yusuke grinned back at her. "I'd forgotten how to smile—until your candle burned my skin."

"I should tell you…"

"I should tell you…"

"I should tell you…"

They both sang, "I should tell—well, here we go. Now we—"

Keiko said, "Oh no…" She let go of his hands and walked a few paces away.

Yusuke shook his head. "I know—this something is—here goes."

"Here goes," Keiko echoed.

"Guess so—it's starting to—who knows?"

"Who knows?" agreed Keiko.

"Who knows where?" they sang in unison. "Who goes there? Who knows?—here goes!"

They grabbed each other's hands once again. "Trusting desire—starting to learn! Walking through fire without a burn! Clinging—a shoulder, a leap begins. Stinging and older, asleep on pins. So here we go. Now we—"

This time, Yusuke hesitated. "Oh no."

"I know," Keiko said soothingly.

"Oh no."

They sang, "Who knows where? Who goes there? Here goes—here goes. Here goes—here goes. Here goes—here goes…"

Yusuke leaned in, and they kissed briefly. He then led her inside where it was warm.


	15. La Vie Boheme B

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. Just know that I sincerely appreciate all your kind comments and constructive criticisms.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 15**

**Shizuru:** Joanne Jefferson (lesbian; lawyer)

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Keiko:** Mimi Marquez (exotic dancer; junkie; HIV positive)

**Botan:** Maureen Johnson (lesbian; performing artist)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

Once indoors, Yusuke and Keiko picked up where they had left off.

Touya spotted them making out first. He pointed, and everyone hooted and whistled. Lively music erupted once again as everyone shouted, "Yeah!"

Keiko pulled away from Yusuke and stood on top of the bar.

"To dance!" everyone yelled.

Keiko sang, "No way to make a living, masochism, pain, perfection, muscle spasms, chiropractors, short careers, eating disorders!"

"Film!" the crowd yelled.

Hiei took her place and sang, "Adventure, tedium, no family, boring locations, darkrooms, perfect faces, egos, money, Hollywood, and sleaze!"

"Music!"

Touya took over. "Food of love, emotion, mathematics, isolation, rhythm, power, feeling, harmony, and heavy competition!"

"Anarchy!"

Kurama and Botan sang, "Revolution, justice, screaming for solutions, forcing changes, risk and danger, making noise, and making pleas!"

Everyone shouted, "To faggots, lezzies, dykes—cross-dressers, too!"

"To me!" Botan yelled.

"To me!" Hiei added.

Kurama and Touya chimed in, "To me!"

Everyone sang, "To you, and you, and you, you, and you! To people living with, living with, living with—not dying from disease! Let he among us without sin be the first to condemn! La Vie Boheme! La Vie Boheme! La Vie Boheme!"

Hiei, Botan, Shizuru, Touya, Kurama, Yusuke, and Keiko were all on top of the table, dancing their asses off. While the crowd chanted, "La Vie Boheme!" Hiei sang:

"Anyone out of the mainstream—is anyone _in_ the mainstream? Anyone alive with a sex drive—tear down the wall—aren't we all? The opposite of war isn't peace! It's creation!"

"Whoo!" everyone exclaimed. "La Vie Boheme!"

Reverbing guitar echoed throughout the café. As if in slow motion, couples struck poses.

Kurama was holding Touya in the air and spinning him around.

Keiko was staring into Yusuke's eyes and running her fingers through his hair.

Hiei, lacking a partner, was doing some crazed dance.

Botan and Shizuru were making out.

At the same instant, the entire pandemonius crowd stopped what they were doing and shouted in unison, "VIVA LA VIE BOHEME!"

…………………

**End of Act One**


	16. Seasons of Love

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Rent.

Thank you so much to my wonderful, supportive reviewers. Just know that I sincerely appreciate all your kind comments and constructive criticisms.

If you haven't already, **please read the list of Important Notes in Chapter 1**.

**CAST LIST for Chapter 16**

**Shizuru:** Joanne Jefferson (lesbian; lawyer)

**Hiei:** Mark Cohen (filmmaker; Jewish)

**Kurama:** Tom Collins (gay; teacher; anarchist; addicted to weed; has AIDS)

**Touya: **Angel Dumott Schunard (street performer; drag queen; has AIDS)

**Yusuke:** Roger Davis (guitarist; former junkie; HIV positive)

**Keiko:** Mimi Marquez (exotic dancer; junkie; HIV positive)

**Botan:** Maureen Johnson (lesbian; performing artist)

**Koenma: **Benjamin Coffin III (owns the apartments and the lot next to them through marriage to a wealthy woman)

Enjoy and **_please review_**!

…………………

Quietly and solemnly, eight people walked into a dark room. They stood in a line, evenly spaced apart from each other.

Slowly, individual lights came up on each of them.

At the right end of the line was Keiko.

Koenma was next to her.

Botan stood next to him, and Kurama stood next to her.

Next came Yusuke, and then Shizuru.

Touya, not dressed in drag, was after her.

Hiei stood next to him, completing the line of friends.

Slowly, with solemn, swelling voices, they sang:

"Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes. Five hundred twenty-five thousand moments so dear. Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes. How do you measure—measure a year? In daylights—in sunsets—in midnights—in cups of coffee. In inches—in miles—in laughter—in strife. In—five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes…how do you measure a year in the life? How about…"

They became alive, swaying and clapping to the beat. Their voices produced beautiful harmonies as they sang:

"…love? How about love? How about love? Measure in love—seasons of love. Seasons of love."

Shizuru began a solo part.

"Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes. Five hundred twenty-five thousand journeys to plan. Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes! How do you measure the life of a woman or a man?"

Kurama picked up where she left off.

"In truth that he learns, or in times that she cried? In bridges he burns, or the way that she died!"

As he held the note of 'died,' the other seven sang,

"It's time now to sing out, for the story never ends. Let's celebrate—remember a year in the life of friends. Remember the love…"

Shizuru sang, "Oh you got to, you got to remember the love!"

"…remember the love…"

"You know that love is a gift from up above!"

"…remember the love…"

"Share love—give love—spread love!"

"Measure in love…"

"Measure…" Shizuru sang, proceeding to a high note. "Measure your life in love!"

"Seasons of love," the company sang. "Seasons of love."

"Measure your life—measure your life in love," Shizuru ended.

The lights flickered off, and the eight friends were bathed in darkness once more.


End file.
